Fairy Tales are Wrong!
by Yamiyo.Darknight
Summary: Tino always felt bad that the dragon was slain in every fairy tale. It doesn't help when he meets one as a child and tries to befriend it... Human names used. T rating for now...
1. Prologue

**_Yamiyo has returned~! Temporarily! *cry*_**

**_This is a new story that I had started a while ago and never typed up. Legend is currently being difficult and is giving me writer's block, so this will have to do for now. Legend is not being abandoned, mind you, just worked on. :I_**

**_Anyways, this is a SuFin fic, and I'm not quite sure how the rating will be. I don't know how well I'm going to be able to write this pairing, as I haven't before...So please be patient with me and feel free to give me advice as I go along. It'd make me happy and I will gladly take everything into account. :)_**

* * *

_Prologue:_

_Fairy Tales are Wrong!_

* * *

It was a cold winter day; the skies were dark and cloudy and snow fell at a quick pace. A cold wind that had gained strength as it traveled shook the small house that small family lived in, causing the inhabitants to momentarily cease their story-telling and become quiet.

The six people in the room, four children and two adults, waited patiently for the gusts to pass before resuming.

"Tell the one about the knight who slayed the dragon!" one of the boys yelled excitedly, pumping a fist into the air as he jumped up to his feet. "That one's the best story ever!"

"We've already heard that one a billion times because of you Mathias," another objected bluntly with a frown.

"Shut up Lukas! It's an awesome story!" Mathias protested determinedly with a pout.

"Don't tell me to shut up!" Lukas snapped back angrily, standing up next to Mathias to try and intimidate the other. He was pulled back down by the smaller boy next to him who was also trying to comfort the small blond who was crying next to him.

"Calm down Lukas. You don't want to get in trouble, do you?" the boy deadpanned. "You two are upsetting Tino."

Lukas and Mathias both settled down and bowed their heads apologetically. "Sorry Emil…Tino…" they both apologized.

The group quieted down and the woman, Tino's mother started the next story; the one Mathias wanted to hear for the millionth time, and the kids gathered around her, listening eagerly with expectant faces.

"Once upon a time, there was a young knight who was brave and courageous. He had decided to start traveling around the world to see how he could help others. He soon discovered that a princess had been taken hostage by a dragon that was supposedly evil. The knight immediately went off to find and slay the dragon so that he could save the princess." She paused and smiled at the wide-eyed boys that were waiting for the next words of the story, although they could probably recite the rest word-for-word.

"He soon found the dragon's lair in a mountain that was secluded by a forest. The dragon was not happy that he'd been discovered and was going to have his princess taken from him. The knight challenged the great beast and the two fought to the death. It was a very long and tiring battle but the brave knight triumphed and slayed the dragon.

He released the grateful princess from her prison and the two ended up marrying each other. The two lived happily ever after. The end."

Mathias cheered happily and Lukas and Emil both clapped a silent applause with small smiles on their faces. Tino, however, began to bawl loudly, tears running down his face.

"Aunty, why is Tino crying? It had a happy ending." Mathias asked as the petite blond woman picked up her sobbing son.

"Why'd the dragon have to die?" Tino wailed, wiping at his eyes with balled up fists.

"He kidnapped a princess and kept her prisoner. It had to be slain!" Mathias retorted dryly. "It was evil!"

Tino shook his head, violet eyes still wet with tears that had yet to fall. "No! What if he was just lonely? What if he just wanted a friend so that he wasn't by himself anymore?"

"You don't kidnap people friends." Lukas replied flatly.

"Maybe he couldn't ask cuz he doesn't speak! Or maybe he was too shy and didn't know how to ask!" Tino continued to protest, fighting back more tears.

"Dragons are evil, stupid!" Mathias retorted with a sneer. "There's no such thing as a good dragon. They all like to eat people and burn down places!" (He was smacked upside the head for calling Tino stupid by Lukas.)

Tino continued to shake his head erratically, so much so that he began to feel a bit dizzy. "No! He…they just don't know how to act around people so they get mistaken to be bad! But they're not! They're really not!"

Tino's mother hushed the children and shook her head at the suddenly intense argument. "Alright, you kids. I think it's time for you all to get to bed. It's getting late and you're all starting to get bad tempers."

The children all whined in protest, but obeyed all the same, clamoring to their room to put on their PJ's. They all said their "good night"s to each other as well as Tino's parents before climbing into their beds and falling asleep.

Little Tino went up to his mother once the other three kids had fallen asleep, tugging on her nightgown gently to get her attention. "Mama?"

"Yes Tino?" his mother responded softly, kneeling before him.

"Was I wrong to say those things? That Mr. Dragon was just lonely and wanted a friend and that he wasn't bad?" Tino asked, voice still wavering and sounding rather upset.

With a quiet laugh, Tino's mother shook her head. "No Tino. You aren't wrong to think that. You just have a very kind heart that likes to think about others too. You're still young but there's something I'd like you to have. It belonged to my mother, but I'd like to give it to you. I think you should have it."

"What's that momma?" Tino asked, violet eyes shining curiously as he watched his mother walk away to get whatever thing he was being promised.

The woman came back and tied a necklace around Tino's thin neck. The child picked up the charm to look at it, gasping softly at the smooth green object.

"This is a very special necklace, Tino. Take very good care of it." his mother said with a smile.

Tino smiled back and let the small green object fall back to land against his small chest. "I will momma!"

The dragon scale glittered softly in the dim light as Tino was carried to bed.

* * *

The prologue is short, so I apologize. ;A;

Anyways, comments, critiques, reviews, favorites, alerts are all appreciated and will be credited starting next chapter. They make me happy and keep me going.

Even if you just take a moment to say, "I lyk this", that'd make me happy. ;w;

This isn't another collab. This is a single-author story.

Ch. 1 is already planned out and being written~!


	2. Chapter 1

** I have again returned from the eternal abyss of writer's block! (Temporarily!) I am SOOOOOO sorry to you all that you had to wait so long for me to update! For everyone who put this story on alert, favorite, or reviewed, you have no idea how much it means to me.**

**I mean, between being swamped by college and work and just shit happening in my family, the fact that you've all been waiting for me means a lot. I really don't mean to keep you waiting, but shit happens. I love you all~! ;w;**

**Thanks to Dogsrule, 101Icestormxx, the Queen of Cookies, PandaCutie77, Bri Nara, NatTheWerewolf, ForTheLoveOfGermany, DeadGirlWalking-chan, BrattySnake for putting the story in your favorites~!**

**Thanks to the Queen of Cookies, gylfie9, , yuz, Sachsen, the laughing hermit, NatTheWerewolf, TreesAndCheese, ForTheLoveOfGermany, DeadGirlWalking-chan, PandaCutie77 for putting this story on alert~!**

**A Huge thank you to the Queen of Cookies, DeadGirlWalking-chan, Spamano4ever, and mylovelybabies for putting my under favorite author! You have no idea how much that really does mean to me! ;w;**

**Another huge thank you to DeadGirlWalking-chan, mylovelybabies, and PandaCutie77for following me! It means a lot!**

**Review Responses:**

**Anon: I apologize to you (and everyone else) for keeping you waiting on chapter one! ^^; I hope you'll enjoy this.****Dogsrule: It's little Tino. Of course he's gonna be worried about the dragon. XD You'll know when it'll be updated again.****the Queen of Cookies: Agh! Again! I'm sorry! ;A; I've kept you waiting like the horrible person that I am! Please forgive me! I'm glad you like it so far though! Please be patient with me!****101Icestormxx: I also love dragons very much! They're so lovely! Thanks so much for the review!****DrawerDiary: Thanks so much! Here's the next chapter! I hope you enjoy it! :3****DeadGirlWalking-chan: Dragons are good! Sometimes. Depending on the dragon at least ;) Hope you'll enjoy this chapter.****Mizuki Fujiwara 14: You scared me there. You really did. But thanks so much! I love that movie (Toothless is so adorable!) but this story will be taking a different tone. It'll be more serious…I think. I really don't know at this point but I hope you'll continue to read along~! BTW I have no idea what NIH means. Sorry. I'm just so lame that way.**

* * *

_Chapter 1:_

_Scales and Feathers_

* * *

(6 years later, 7 years from present time)

Age: 11

Young Tino did not mind getting up at an early time for school. He didn't mind having to rush to get ready and leave. He just didn't like it when he was told that he'd be going to a new middle school after they'd moved to a new house; his father had gotten a new job that required the transfer. Maybe it was a bit overkill to throw a childish tantrum at his age, but he didn't like such a sudden major change in his life.

He already had very few friends, mostly his cousins. He didn't really have anyone that he liked to hang out with since he was usually picked on. He usually got called chubby or weird for having violet eyes, but he always knew that it was untrue what they said. Or so he constantly told himself. He was still young. He'd grow out of the baby fat. He was sure of it.

Back on topic.

It was hard for him to imagine having to leave and go to a school where he'd know absolutely no one. Hetalia Intermediate was a nice school. Or so his mom told him. But he didn't care. He didn't want to go. Who wants to go to a new school and have to lose their only friends while doing so?

Yea, you could keep in touch through phone calls, but honestly? He'd rather talk to his friends face to face. He couldn't play with them. He'd be moving too far away.

He begged his mother to let them stay, but it was futile. They'd already found the house they were going to be living in and he'd already been registered at the new school.

Wonderful.

Tino woke up at the sound of his shrill alarm clock and smacked the button to shut it off before sitting up and rubbing his eyes tiredly. He stumbled out of the bed and walked to his closet before stripping and putting his new uniform on. It wasn't ugly at least, but he still didn't quite care.

"Tino! Breakfast is ready! Come down and eat before you fall behind and become late!" his mother called from the floor below.

"Okay mom!" he called back, already feeling the anxiety building inside him. Could he survive the first day, let alone the whole 3 years he'd be there? He stepped down the stairs gingerly, staring at his feet. 'I don't want to go…' he thought to himself miserably.

He plunked down onto the kitchen chair and stared at the plate with his food in front of him as if expecting it to start dancing around and singing. "Hurry up and eat Tino. We need to leave soon, dear. Don't want to be late, especially on the first day." His mother said, knowing that her son was just nervous.

Tino sighed and started eating the food dejectedly, occasionally poking at the eggs. "I don't want to go…" he mumbled with a pout. "I won't know anyone there and I'm scared."

"You'll be fine, Tino." His mother replied softly, patting him on the head. "You've got the dragon spirit with you remember?"

Tino looked at the scale which dangled from his neck and smiled sadly at it. His mother often told him that the scale had a dragon spirit watching over him so that he didn't have to be scared. It had calmed him down often when he had had a night mare or was just scared from something. It really was a reassuring object to have with him, and looking at it then made him feel slightly more confident.

"I remember, mama. The dragon will protect me right?" he responded, looking up at the blond figure who stood next to him.

"Of course. Never forget that." she said with a warm smile.

"Okay." Tino replied with a bigger smile. He finished his meal and then went back upstairs to brush his teeth. He snagged his back pack and then trotted down the stairs, following his mother out the door to the car, feeling ready to take on this school than ever…

…Or so he'd thought.

Once arriving at the school, he promptly began to panic again. Students were all hanging out together at the front of the school, talking amongst one another cheerfully.

He paled and stepped out of the car shakily, gripping the backpack tightly in his hands. Okay. Maybe he wasn't as confident as he'd originally thought. He hesitated to keep walking but his mother shooed him away so he awkwardly started heading to the front of the school, ducking his head down whenever a student would look his way.

He wished that he had Lukas, Mathias, and Emil there to at least talk with. Just so he wouldn't feel so alone. He immediately headed to where he thought the office was and didn't have much trouble finding it. The woman at the desk smiled at him warmly, and he smiled shyly back as he stepped forward.

"Did you need help with something?" she asked sweetly.

He nodded and scuffed his feet on the floor nervously. "U-um, I'm new here…I just started today…and I dunno where my classes are," he answered quietly, almost too quietly.

The women clapped her hands together, causing poor Tino to jump in surprise. "Oh~! I know who you are! Tino Väinämöinen right?"

Tino's eyes widened. "You can pronounce my name right? Most people get it wrong."

"I took several years of Finnish while in school, so it's helped me a lot in pronouncing names." the woman replied with a laugh. "But yes. I have your schedule, dear. Let me go get that for you."

"O-okay…"

Tino waited patiently (although it didn't take long) for the woman to come back with his schedule and took it in his hands nervously when it was handed to him.

"Those are the classes you're going to have for the year unless you decide to have something changed. But I think you'll enjoy them since you're just starting. There's a map on the other side so you know where you are. You're new here and it's not unusual to get lost on the first day." the woman explained cheerfully. "Let me know if you need help with anything else."

Tino nodded again without a reply and shuffled awkwardly out of the office, staring at the map as if it were the most interesting thing in the world. At least he had something to help him get around…

He jumped when the bell rang, signaling students to head to their first class. He gripped the paper in his hands, wrinkling it and headed in the direction that he figured his class was in. He walked into the room and made sure to check it was the right one. It was.

There were already quite a few students sitting in the room chatting. Tino didn't bother to greet any of them, thought it didn't seem to matter. He glanced around the classroom, trying to take in what he could. It wasn't an overly decorated room although it did feel homely. There were a few plants with flowers that Tino thought were pretty with their bright and cheery colors. There was a small cage with a snake in it. Tino looked at the small corn snake with interest and watched as it slithered up to him and flicked out its tongue.

"You like snakes?"

Tino squeaked in surprise and turned around quickly to see the man who he assumed was his teacher. "A-are you the teacher?" he asked shyly, clasping his hands to the hem of his shirt again (it was surely going to be ruined by the end of the day).

The man nodded with a smile and ruffled the boy's hair. "Yes. My name is Mr. Lyson. You're a new face. Are you new?"

Tino nodded again, slightly shrinking away from the unfamiliar touch. "Y-yes. My name is Tino…I just start here today."

Mr. Lyson smiled gently and nodded again. "I see. Well then, welcome to the school. I hope that you'll like it here. Some of the students can be real rowdy but I'm sure that you can handle it."

Tino smiled weakly and squeezed the hem of his shirt tighter. "Y-yea." _I hope so…_ he thought to himself. He jolted in his spot when the bell rang and his teacher walked to his desk, ushering the students back to their desks.

"Alright class, I'd like you all to meet Tino here. He's just starting here today, so be sure to be kind to him." He turned to look at a snickering albino-colored kid. "No making fun of him, and Gilbert, am I going to have to send you to detention again?"

"Gilbert" immediately shut his mouth and glowered at the teacher with a pout.

"Now, Tino, since you're new, why don't you introduce yourself to the class?" Mr. Lyson suggested, trying to encourage his new student to talk to the others.

Poor Tino, however, was terrified and shook his head desperately. "I-I'd rather not…"

"Haha! That kid's a sissy!" a blonde yelled from the back of the room.

"Alfred, you're staying after class." Lyson sighed irritably.

Alfred whined and then crossed his arms angrily, not liking having been punished.

"Go on Tino."

Knowing that "no" wasn't going to be taken as an answer, Tino reluctantly moved to the front of the class. "H-hello. My name is Tino Väinämöinen…I'm just starting today…I'd like to be a story writer someday…and I like dragons."

Mr. Lyson nodded with approval and gave the child a soft pat on the shoulder. "Alright Tino, thank you. You'll be sitting behind…" He grabbed his roster and furrowed his brow. "Matthew? Who's Matthew? Raise your hand please."

A blond-haired kid, who looked rather upset at the moment, raised his hand and Tino slowly worked his way over to the desk behind him. Once Tino had sat down, Matthew turned to face him and smiled shyly. "Hello, my name's Matthew Williams. It's scary coming to a new school, huh?"

Tino, surprised by the sudden welcome, smiled back and nodded. "Yea. I just found out that we were moving recently. So I don't have any friends here."

Matthew shook his head and offered his hand for Tino to take. "No, that's not true. If anything, we can be friends."

Tino felt a wave of relief and happiness come over him and he nodded ecstatically, taking Matthew's small hand with his own. "Really? That's great! Thanks Matthew!"

Matthew nodded. "Of course. And during lunch I can show you around the school too."

"Thanks!"

The classes seemed really long to Tino and he wasn't sure he was going to enjoy the rest of the year in them. It did help that Matthew was in all of his classes, so he at least had someone that he knew with him. Matthew ended having to do something at lunch, so now he was sitting alone again on the roof of the building. It was available to the students, but it didn't seem like it was very popular to them.

So there he was.

Yup.

On a roof.

Alone.

Staring at some random floating clouds.

It wasn't exciting. But it was quiet and calming at least. No annoying kids bugging him. Just silence and clouds. And a falling green something.

What?

Tino stood up from where he was sitting and immediately ran over to what looked like a green feather that had fallen on the ground. He picked it up and was immediately mesmerized by the deep forest green of the feather. Not only that, but the feather itself was very soft.

He tried bending it but it didn't snap. No, it jumped back to its curved pose and stayed that way. Tino smiled and knew that he needed to keep it. This wasn't just any feather. This was a special feather.

"This didn't come from a bird. I know it!" he exclaimed excitedly to himself.

Somehow, sitting alone on the rooftop then didn't seem so bad anymore.

To make up for not being able to meet up during lunch, Matthew told Tino that he'd walk him part of the way home. Tino had accepted happily and the two talked cheerfully with each other on the way.

At least until they reached the forest. Matthew immediately became silent and Tino began to wonder why.

"Hey, Matthew. Is everything okay?" he asked, concerned that maybe his friend wasn't feeling well.

"I-I'm okay. But they say this forest is cursed or something." Matthew replied quietly, eyes shifting nervously to the trees and shrubs as if expecting some monster to coming popping out. "I've heard the adults even talking about it. That there's a monster in there. Some kids went missing in there and never came back."

Tino shuddered. "W-wow. That's really scary."

Matthew nodded. "Yea. So be careful around here, okay?" He looked as he was called and waved good-bye to Tino before taking off to his parent's car.

Alone again.

He looked back at the forest and noticed something shining on the ground. "What's that?" He wandered over to it and bent down to pick it up. It was another feather, the same feel and color as the one that he'd found on the roof earlier. Not too much father, there was another shining object. He picked that one up and gasped.

A scale. The same as the one he was already wearing. A dragon scale?

He shot back up and gazed into the forest's depths. Summoning what courage he had, he marched into the dark foliage and wondered if this forest was really cursed after all.

* * *

**Thanks for reading this chapter! I hope that you'll review! It makes me happy to read them, even if they're only a sentence long or something. No flaming though. That'll just make me mad. Reviews, favorites, and alerts make me happy~! :3**


	3. Chapter 2

** has again returned from the eternal abyss of evil college work! (Temporarily!) I am hoping that this wait wasn't as long as the other one…I actually had some motivation to write this time…though I didn't know quite what I was doing. I had ch 1 and 2 planned out but they ended up turning out very different from what I planned…because I FAIL!**

**I've actually been writing this on my ipod since it's portable and I can work on it in class in my free time since I won't have my computer with me except for when I'm at home…**

** For everyone who put this story on alert, favorite, or reviewed, you have no idea how much it means to me.**

**Thanks to tmmdeathwishraven, X-x-Kag-Xion-Uchiha-x-X, Finnyfin, 0X0PaNdA HeRo0X0, melodyliliana9893, cosplayadict, and shinyglaceon1234 for putting the story in your favorites~!**

**Thanks to tmmdeathwishraven, Skaftafell, Prussian Sinister, FalalalaLa, Bri Nara, Finnyfin, Yekaterina Vera, InkFlow, strictlyfictional, Tragically Hopeless, lavalicoriceandice, cheshirejin, Yuuseki no Yume, wolfspeaker01, and xXAsteraXx for putting this story on alert~!**

**A Huge thank you to X-x-Kag-Xion-Uchiha-x-X for putting my under favorite author! You have no idea how much that really does mean to me! ;w;**

**Another huge thank you to lavalicoriceandice for following me! It means a lot!**

**Review Responses:**

**Dogsrule: Indeed a dragon scale! :D****tmmdeathwishraven: Hellz yea dragons are badass! :D That's why I love them so!****Prussian Sinister: I love Hetalia. And I love dragons. It is rather uncommon I guess…I haven't found many with the mix either…****101Icestormxx: I wanted Tino and Mattie to be friends because both of them are rather soft-spoken and shy around others. They have pretty similar personalities if you think about it so that's why I did that. J****DrawerDiary: Thanks so much! They go well together don't they? w And I hope you enjoy this chapter. This is like the end of the intro…sort of.****DeadGirlWalking-chan: Omfg ;w; Thanks so much! I'm so glad you liked that chapter. I hope you'll like this one too.****Askea: This will definitely be continued, don't worry. :D****cloudlily: This doesn't count as soon does it? ;w; It's sooner than my other ones but still….****Guest: Hope you'll enjoy this chapter as well! :D**

* * *

_Chapter 2:_

_Friend?_

(7 years from present time)

Age: 11

* * *

The foliage of this dark and quiet place was thick and Tino had a hard time trying to push through it. His mother would surely panic when she found him in the state he would be when he got home.

His face was currently covered in scratches from running into branches and sticks that had been sticking out. The knees of his pants were now slightly torn from a fall he'd taken not too far from where he currently was. It didn't stop him. Those wounds were nothing. They didn't hurt, but at the same time he wasn't really paying any attention to them. He was too preoccupied by the fact that he'd just found his dragon.

Or so he thought.

But then again, it couldn't be just some stupid coincidence that the scale he'd found matched the one on his necklace exactly. A bit shiner and less scratched up, but still the same. And the feather. It had to be from the same creature that had these shining green scales.

His heart thumped with excitement (or was that just from the exertion from walking through this accursed place?) and he found himself wondering if this would turn out to be a wonderful day after all.

He'd made a friend with someone very kind. He'd managed to get through his classes easily enough, and had even impressed the kid who'd made fun of him in their math class. That was certainly something wasn't it? He grabbed the scale and squeezed it with a smile.

"This is a great day after all! It has to be!" he exclaimed to himself. He trudged on through the forested area and stopped when he heard a distant noise of some kind. It sounded like the rustling of a tree or bush. He pushed through the stubborn plants and gasped at the sight before him.

There, in front of his eyes, was a large and beautiful lake. The water was clear and filled with lily plants, the colors of the flowers being of every hue he'd ever imagined. And that didn't mean like the colors you'd see in some crayon box. No. These flowers looked like something carved from crystals of the highest quality.

He looked around in awe, watching some small dragonflies zip about in the air; their colors were also very bright. It seemed so magical. He wondered if he was dreaming.

Pinch on the arm…

Nope.

He was certainly awake.

He smiled brighter and ran to the water's edge excitedly, clutching the feather and loose scale that he'd found. He stopped in front of it and bent down to peer into the clear water, almost afraid to touch the amazingly still surface. Everything seemed so perfect here.

Maybe too perfect.

He looked up and then started to become frightened. Hadn't Matthew said that some kids had gone missing in this place? It was an amazing sight to behold. Maybe they'd become so entranced that they'd never wanted to leave.

Well…that was his thought until he heard the almost inaudible growl from beyond the other side of the lake.

Was that something he'd really heard? Maybe he was imagining things…

That was when he started to remember the words that his friend had said to him.

_I-I'm okay. But they say this forest is cursed or something…_

_I've heard the adults even talking about it. That there's a monster in there..._

_Some kids went missing in there and never came back._

He shuddered and clutched the dragon scales tightly in his small hands. There wasn't really a monster was there?

He froze when he heard the growl come again, this time louder. He stood up slowly, nervously. "I-is someone there?" Tino asked nervously, hoping that it was just some prank that a classmate was playing on him.

The growl came again in response, much more loudly. This thing was just moving closer to him.

"P-please don't hurt me, whoever's there…I-I'm not doing anything bad, I promise! I-I just came to find where the scale was coming from!" the boy continued in a frightened voice, holding up the scale and the feather.

The bushes behind him rustled and Tino whirled around in fear, feeling his knees buckle.

He crumpled to the floor with a panic and could only stare in front of him with horror. He waited for the monster that would surely kill him to appear, but it didn't.

In its place, a small winged serpent stood, not looking too happy. It had shimmering green scales that reminded Tino of emeralds and jade mixed together. The feathers seemed like a lighter shade of the same color, but its eyes we're what caught his attention.

A bright, warm yet icy blue. A blue that reminded him of the ocean in winter.

Wait. Winged...? Serpent...?

A dragon!

"Y-you're a dragon!" Tino exclaimed, pointing a finger at the creature.

The creature growled and narrowed its eyes at him.

"Ah! Wait! I won't hurt you! I promise! I'm just here cuz I wanted to see where this scale and feather came from!" Tino explained slowly, trying not to frighten the being away. "See?"

He held up the newer scale and the feather for the small dragon to see. It looked at them with disdain as if it didn't quite care about the scale and feather, and quickly turned its sharp gaze back at Tino.

"Um... They wouldn't happen to be yours would they?" Tino asked unsurely.

The dragon shook its head and seemed to have calmed down some. It wasn't growling anymore, although its gaze still seemed rather harsh and frightening.

Now that he thought about it, Tino realized that the creature was a lot smaller than he'd thought it would be. Weren't dragons supposed to be huge? Taller than houses and castles? This one came up to his shoulder. Stretched out fully, it'd probably be as tall as his mom (which wasn't very big at all).

"A-are you a baby dragon?" Tino asked, standing up slowly. He stood in his spot and didn't move towards the hatchling, although it backed away all the same.

It seemed to be frightened now that he'd asked the question. Perhaps it had been hoping he wouldn't discover that fact, should the child be a threat to it. But he had and now it was probably in danger.

"Oh! Don't go away! Please don't go! I won't hurt you! I like dragons!" Tino pleaded, lowering himself back to the ground so that he wouldn't look so threatening. 'Mama always said to make yourself seem smaller and go to their eye level if you don't wanna scare away an animal.'

The dragon eyed him sharply with its icy blue eyes, but it seemed that it was beginning to believe him, if a little bit at least.

"Um...will you come closer please? I'll stay still." Tino asked, hoping he'd be able to get a better look at the serpent before him. It had never occurred to him that he'd be able to meet the creature that matched his necklace. He wasn't going to let his chance slip away. "My name is Tino. Do you have a name too?"

The dragon nodded and slowly, warily, crept up to Tino, watching every movement he made.

"Can you tell me your name?"

"N'mes h'ld p'wr over us," the dragon said, it's voice obviously young. So he had been right about it being a baby, or at least young. "You might use it against me."

"Names hold power?" Tino echoed on surprise. "I didn't know that. But is there something I can at least call you? So I don't have to call you 'dragon'?"

It blinked and seemed to be in thought. "Well..." It slithered closer to Tino, close enough for the boy to touch (though he wasn't going to dare try it). "You c'n call me Su."

"Okay!" Tino agreed with a smile. "I'm going to introduce myself better then! My name is Tino and I'm 11 and I'm from Finland. I moved here recently though and have to go to a new school." He paused. "Tell me about yourself."

Su cocked his head to the side, puzzled by the boy's friendliness with him. "Well, I t'ld you I c'n't tell you m' n'me, but I am from wh're you humans call Sweden. In our tongue, it is Lotchkul. I am half a cent'ry old an' I came here with my mother..." He paused. "Wh't is school?"

Tino crossed his arms. "Well, school is a place for kids to go and learn different things like math and writing and stuff. We go to school for 13 years or more. But it depends on the person."

"That is a v'ry long time f'r you humans 'sn't it?" Su asked curiously.

"Yea. Sometimes it isn't fun because other kids like to pick on me." Tino complained with a pout.

"They w'ld t'rm'nt their kin?" Su asked, sounding disgusted.

"Yea but some people are just like that cuz they're just big meanies and don't know how to be nice." Tino explained.

"Th't does not s'm v'ry nice." Su commented rather bitterly.

"It really isn't." Tino agreed. He paused and smiled, reaching his hand out to the hatchling. "But we can be friends right?"

He didn't get the reaction he'd expected. The sudden movement startled the dragon and he snarled and within the blink of an eye, was gone, leaving Tino alone again.

In the dark forest.

Without him knowing which way he came in.

Oh dear...

* * *

Favorites, Follows, and Reviews= Love and happiness for me! They make me want to post faster so keep em coming, even if they're a couple words long!


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